[Linkdeath]

I'm just wondering how other GMs handle this sort of thing. My players have basically said this to me:

In SR4A, it states that storage in the 2070's is basically unlimited. Once your device runs out of room, you can just upload it to the Matrix for storage somewhere. That being said, I run recordings with my cybereyes (with cameras) and my cyberears (with recorders) constantly. When the internal storage fills up, I just dump it online and keep recording, so I have a 24x7 recording of everything I do.

That makes amnesia really tough to do. It's hard to tell someone that they wake up with no knowledge of how they got there. Even Laes doesn't work, because they just call up their recorded footage and see what happened!

Even as I type this out, however, I'm getting some ideas of how to handle this. In the case given above, I could also have a hacker crack their storage and erase recordings. But also, I could really mess with my players and have someone break in and steal ALL of their recordings and thereby have a full record of every run they've been on, the node access, where they live, who they associate with, etc. Ooh! (evil laugh) >

But seriously, has anyone else run into this and how did you handle it?

[Novocrane]

Look up Soldier in the Mist and Soldier of Arete. (sold in one volume as Latro of the Mist) Consider watching Memento. Might as well throw in Planescape: Torment, too.

You can get a picture perfect account of something, but the character will likely miss details in recording, either by not being present or not catching it in-frame. Garbled context and missing cues can put the screws in.

[Mithlas]

Even runners without the Paranoid quality shouldn't be backing up everything they do, that's like walking around with a neon sign saying "I make a living off of crime! Shoot me for a reward!" Runners would likely want to quietly back up every run (and likely also meets and preliminaries if possible), but the more recording and backups you make, the more of a Data Shadow you might be leaving for others to follow.

[emsquared]

I could really mess with my players and have someone break in and steal ALL of their recordings and thereby have a full record of every run they've been on, the node access, where they live, who they associate with, etc. Ooh! (evil laugh) >

But seriously, has anyone else run into this and how did you handle it?

Yeah, most Johnson's, if they found out this was going on would probably have that guy's eye-balls plucked out of his head. There's all kinds of biometric scanners - facial and voice being the primary concern here, used by authorities. And for this reason it's a huge liability your players are creating. Some random Hacker, or paid employee of KE, stumbles upon these massive audio/video files in the cloud - run it through their biometric databases and who knows who and what they'll pluck out of your PCs life. Not hard at all for this to back-fire. Extortion is a beautiful thing.

[Bewilderbeast]

If they have total amnesia, wouldn't they also forget their passwords to their online storage? 

[Mirikon]

Remember, the Resonance never forgets.

[Linkdeath]

If they have total amnesia, wouldn't they also forget their passwords to their online storage? 

Yeah, but this was part of the Elven Blood book. They were just hit with Laes, meaning they only lose the past couple of hours. However, the whole POINT was they have to go back and investigate everyone they dealt with through the day and figure out which one of them got them. The first thing my player wanted to do was pull up his recordings and see right away who did it. Obviously, if I allowed him to do that, it breaks the entire game. A 5-hour gaming sesion would have been finished in 1. Ugh.

[raggedhalo]

Tir Ghosts are renowned for being awesome hackers.  Hardly a big shock to learn they deleted your archives, backups and recycle bin!

[farothel]

The first runner who pulls a trick like that with me I would let him, and then his mates can figure out a way to get him out of a Lone Star detention facility after run 2, simply because the police managed to get hold of his records.  Or an elite corporate hit squad (firewatch, SK-prime, Dawkings, those people), depending on what they were doing when they recorded all that stuff.

[Walks Through Walls]

I agree with several of the people that have stated that they would be making a huge liability for themselves in documenting everything.

As far as amnesia goes you could take it one step further than simply erasing there upload and have it where a false "set of memories" were uploaded so when they came out they thought something completely different happened.

[Linkdeath]

I agree with several of the people that have stated that they would be making a huge liability for themselves in documenting everything.

As far as amnesia goes you could take it one step further than simply erasing there upload and have it where a false "set of memories" were uploaded so when they came out they thought something completely different happened.

That's the natural next step, but I hadn't thought of it. I thank you, and my players may learn to curse your name. MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

[Mirikon]

I agree with several of the people that have stated that they would be making a huge liability for themselves in documenting everything.

As far as amnesia goes you could take it one step further than simply erasing there upload and have it where a false "set of memories" were uploaded so when they came out they thought something completely different happened.

That's the natural next step, but I hadn't thought of it. I thank you, and my players may learn to curse your name. MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

If you really want to screw with their heads, edit a porn simsense to put the team members' faces in it.

[All4BigGuns]

Rather than viewing it quite as "unlimited" I find it best to view it as simply that whatever storage is needed is there, and really it's far better than the old way of constantly having to micro-manage storage and memory and crap. With how inexpensive data chips are, the way I think is best to handle things is for having some to be rolled into any lifestyle of Low or higher.

[Linkdeath]

I agree with several of the people that have stated that they would be making a huge liability for themselves in documenting everything.

As far as amnesia goes you could take it one step further than simply erasing there upload and have it where a false "set of memories" were uploaded so when they came out they thought something completely different happened.

That's the natural next step, but I hadn't thought of it. I thank you, and my players may learn to curse your name. MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

If you really want to screw with their heads, edit a porn simsense to put the team members' faces in it.

*finally stops laughing and wipes the tears out of his eyes* Dear spirits ... YES!

[Walks Through Walls]

I agree with several of the people that have stated that they would be making a huge liability for themselves in documenting everything.

As far as amnesia goes you could take it one step further than simply erasing there upload and have it where a false "set of memories" were uploaded so when they came out they thought something completely different happened.

While that does have its sadistic qualities and humor in it. I was thinking more along the lines of they think they helped person/group A vs person/group B when in reality they did the opposite. So when they go hunting someone they go after the wrong person or group or when they look for help they go to the one who set them up.

That's the natural next step, but I hadn't thought of it. I thank you, and my players may learn to curse your name. MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

If you really want to screw with their heads, edit a porn simsense to put the team members' faces in it.

*finally stops laughing and wipes the tears out of his eyes* Dear spirits ... YES!